


Protect

by gingayellow



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-22
Updated: 2016-07-22
Packaged: 2018-07-26 02:28:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7556515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gingayellow/pseuds/gingayellow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Keith will always be there for Shiro. Always. [Shiro/Keith, content warnings for brainwashing, non-explicit trauma and violence. This is yet another "it ends happily, but it takes awhile" story, and probably one of the weirder things I've written].</p>
            </blockquote>





	Protect

Title: Protect  
Fandom: Voltron: Legendary Defender  
Characters/Pairing: Shiro/Keith  
Rating: PG-13  
Disclaimer: Not mine, anything mentioned here by name isn't mine  
Warnings: Brainwashing, past trauma, past violence.  
Notes: For hc_bingo, prompt is "deadline." This is yet another “it ends happily, but it takes awhile” fic. Probably one of the weirder things I've written.

\--

The Champion’s will is strong, but Haggar is stronger.

She’s been in his mind so often at this point, that she knows exactly where the last bits of resistance are, and how to crush them. When he insists he would never hurt anyone, she reminds him of all the times he has. When he tries to think of those he cares for, she replays the moments when he lost them, and could nothing for them. He has no one else that will care for him, but her.

It takes time, but slowly but surely, he understands. He lets the darkness seep into him, and Haggar is thrilled to know that her greatest weapon is only a few moments away from completion.

There’s just one problem. 

A small one, of course. There’s one tiny pinpoint of resistance left in the Champion’s soul. It’s so small, he’s probably not even aware that he’s still fighting back. Well then, that’ll just make it easier as she reaches out to crush it—

She cries out as she’s burnt, and the light is so bright she can’t see.

When it fades, there’s another Human there, cradling the Champion. But he’s smaller, and his form is misty—his spirit is here, but not his body.

Haggar is surprised. She didn’t know Humans had this ability, but it doesn’t matter. She commands the spirit to step away from the Champion, channeling magic to dispel him.

Her magic freezes in mid-air as the spirit takes another form. Mist turns into fire, and the fury etched on his face rivals Zarkon’s as he raises his hands, and her spell is flying at her.

**_LEAVE HIM ALONE!!!_ **

She’s able to put up a shield to absorb most of the damage, but she’s still burnt, and knocked on the ground. When she looks up, the spirit is gone, and the Champion is awake. Just barely murmuring something about someone named ‘Keith,’ maybe if she—

“Haggar?!” He shouldn’t be able to snap through his restraints, but he manages. He’s trying to escape again, so she calls for two guards. Then two more. Then her own druids.

In the end, she has four guards struggling and five druids casting sleep spells, but all it does is slow him down enough so they can escort him to his cell.

“This isn’t over!” He’d been so docile before, but now it was like all the fire was back in him. “I **will** get out of here, and I **will** stop you!” He’s still screaming as they drag him away.

All her hard work, undone because some Human couldn’t keep his nose out of her business.

But he was gone. And there’s no way the Champion could escape.

\--

Keith stumbles forward, because Shiro’s in danger, he needs him, but he collapses before he can make it out the door. He feels like all the life’s been drained out of him, but Shiro needs him, so he forces his eyes open, and… it’s his bedroom ceiling. It’s his shack.

He’s at home, and Shiro was lost on the Kerberos mission.

But he’s not dead.

He’s not.

This is not the first time Keith’s woken up in this condition, so he knows what to do. After taking a few minutes to gather what little strength he has left, he stands up—and quickly makes his way to the wall, so he has something to lean against. After that, he lurches to the kitchen sink, sticks his head under the faucet, and runs the water as cold as it’ll go.

He tries to remember what he saw.

They’re not dreams. They’re too real. He could feel Shiro’s skin, cold and clammy. He could smell the sulfur, and—and it was really hot at the end as well.

They happen too often to be dreams. They started right before he got expelled. Foggy images of Shiro in danger that he **knew** were real. After he returned to his shack, they became clearer. Shiro fighting… monsters? Aliens? Sometimes, he would yell at Shiro, or grab him, and sometimes it worked—but all too often it didn’t. The worst had been when he woke up screaming at Shiro to look out, because there was an energy blast heading straight for his right arm…

Keith shudders, and turns off the faucet. 

Lately, they’re getting more intense. He swears, he’s there in the cell with Shiro sometimes. He can do more as well, sort of. He can sit with him, hold him, and channel as much strength into Shiro as he can. Keith is pretty sure this is why he wakes up shaking lately, but he doesn’t care. A few woozy mornings are nothing compared to what Shiro’s going through.

He remembers that there was a woman, trying to do something to Shiro. Something that Shiro couldn’t deal with anymore, so Keith made her stop.

But right now, he’s here, and Shiro is alone, with no one to protect him.

He pauses, as something calm/cool/blue settles into his mind, taking the edge off. This happens now as well, usually when he’s especially upset. He’s still worried about Shiro, but he remembers the work he’s done, and that the deadline is approaching. Tomorrow night, he’ll know what happened to Shiro and the Holts.

He looks over his corkboard of weird legends, finger tapping on a scribble of a lion in blue ink he drew just because he felt like it. The blue presence does something again, this time bringing up an image of Shiro.

Keith freezes. He wants to, but he can’t let himself hope. Not about this.

The image of Shiro is clearer now, and he swears he can **feel** the blue presence grin (and maybe even wink?) at him.

“I’m gonna see him again,” he breathes, because if blue is **this** insistent, then it must be true.

That means he only has two days to turn his search mission into a rescue mission as well.

\--

It’s like his visions: people are trying to hurt Shiro. The key difference is that he can do more than channel his spirit into Shiro. He can beat the snot out of the monsters this time, and he does just that.

Shiro looks just like in his visions as well. Weathered and grey-haired and exhausted, and his heart sinks as he remembers just the small fraction of Shiro’s life he’s seen… but what matters now is saving him.

The three weird people are obnoxious, but they’re friendly, and he can’t afford to refuse their help. 

\--

When Shiro wakes up, Keith explains the parts that make sense. He glosses over the parts that don’t.

Then things get **really** weird.

\--

When Keith wakes up, it’s not with the same sense of dreadful urgency he did back on Earth while Shiro was missing, but he knows that something is wrong. So he gets up, grabs his knife and boots, and wanders off to find Shiro. It turns out he’s in his room.

Shiro looks as lost as he did in the vision, staring out at the stars, but he smiles at Keith. “You’re up late.”

“So are you.”

The smile fades. “I suppose I am.” He gives Keith a thoughtful look. “So, how did you know I wasn’t able to sleep?”

Keith gives him a look.

“Nevermind, then.” Then he shifts. “Well, if neither of us can sleep alone, maybe we can at least get a couple of hours together?”

“I’m not sleepy,” Keith says as he settles into Shiro. “I’m gonna keep watch.”

“My brave Paladin.” Keith relaxes when he feels Shiro’s fingers in his hair. “But I’m pretty sure even you need to sleep.”

“Nope,” he says around a yawn. Dang it. “Like you said, I’m a Paladin. I protect those who need it.”

“Hey.” Shiro kisses a spot above Keith’s right ear. “Let me protect you for once.”

Keith closes his eyes. “Okay.”

\--

Part of Shiro wants Keith to stay awake, and make good on his promise. But Shiro objectively knows that he's safe, and Keith had looked so tired. Besides, he’s done so much for Shiro already.

He hadn’t said it when they spoke, because it’s strange. He’s not sure how to phrase it without sounding weird. It doesn’t help that he only remembers fragments of his time as a prisoner as well. 

But… sometimes… usually when he was scared, or at his lowest, he could have sworn Keith was watching over him. Protecting him. And sometimes that was what kept Shiro going.

So if he can repay him for that, even just making sure Keith gets something approaching a decent night’s sleep, he will.


End file.
